For 54 years UMNO/BN has been exploiting our resources both natural and man-made.
Water
We have a lot of rain and many rivers but still we have water shortages and many villages still have no piped water and for those who have piped water it is of poor quality because it is tainted with high ferric compound and very fine blackish dirt. Is it impossible to provide hundred percent to the entire nation wherever it may be after 54 year of independence and being able to send an angkasawan (astronaut) to the international space station? Has not Malaysia been portrayed by UMNO-BN as everything “Boleh” (within reach)?
The UMNO-BN government has on several occasions warned us of the possible water crisis and that huge amounts of money is needed to transfer raw water from Pahang to Selangor. Melaka is also getting its raw water supply from the Muar River in Johore and Sungai Linggi in Negeri Sembilan. But is it really necessary to spend huge amount of money to transfer water from one state to another? Does it mean that the UNO/BN government has admitted failure when even after the privatization of our water treatment and supply system, we are going to face a water crisis?
The only plausible reason is simply that the UMNO-BN government has failed miserably in its duty to provide clean and cheap, if not free water, to the entire nation. The water transfer projects are just money-making schemes for their leaders and their cronies.
The UMNO-BN government is just more interested in money-making-schemes and siphoning money. If it is really committed to providing this important basic supply, Malaysia would have been in the forefront of water technology and supply.
We could be the ones being engaged by countries in the arid regions for our expertise, yet Singapore without much natural water resources has been actively engaged through its Public Utility Board consultancy company PUB Consultants Private Limited (PUBC), a wholly-owned subsidiary of PUB. It has been the water consultant for several Middle East countries like Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi.PUBC is also involved in China, India, Australia and Brunei.
Rice
We once had large areas of rice fields within the state of Kedah being our “rice bowl” but the area has been reduced so much until there is a need to have another huge area in Sarawak to cultivate rice. Rice is our staple diet and it was part of the Ministry of Agriculture’s vision to be self-sufficient in food.
The NFC debacle is just part of the overall vision. But is it really necessary to convert our paddy fields for other development in the first place? Why can’t it be avoided? Are there not enough barren land and small hills to be used for this purpose?
When Thailand was inundated with floods destroying its rice fields, we were scared when contemplating the shortage of rice in the world supply, but the UMNO-BN government under Prime Minister Najib Razak has done nothing thus far to ensure that we have enough of our own supply from our local producers. We do need to have our “rice bowl” somewhere within the country and we need it urgently.
Yes, the UMNO-BN government too does find the need to ensure we are self sufficient in food, but what happened is the result of unscrupulous, callous and greedy politicians who allowed our rice field areas to be converted to residential and commercial land. We have huge areas that are being left uncultivated and whatever schemes that the UMNO-BN has tried so far has ended up with the lands overgrown with weeds and creepers. Why pay lip service to the need for another “rice bowl” when no effort is made to have the project implemented properly and successfully?
Timber
Timber that needs thousands of years to grow to a prime state have vanished from the virgin forests within one generation. The unscrupulous felling of timber without any consideration for the future and destroying the way of life of our indigenous people! Yet the states like Sabah, Sarawak and Pahang are still under developed. Where have all the timber money gone to? Who got the benefits?
Unfortunately even after knowing that our timber has been depleted, the UMNO-BN government has not embarked on replanting to replenish the supply. Whatever efforts have been for show, too little and too late. Just another money-making scheme in the form of supplying the seedlings. We are so desperate for wood that even our rubber trees are in short supply – not for its latex but for its wood!
Petroleum
In 1994, the amount of cash that Petronas our main source of huge income had was in the region of RM20 billion, excluding assets and capital for investments. Yet today, Petronas cannot even find enough capital for finding more oil fields. However, Dr Mahathir is still the advisor while Hassan Merican was side-lined and Tun Salleh Abbas, who tried to prevent the siphoning of funds from Petronas, was sacked as the Chief Justice.
Instead of benefiting the country, Petronas has been used to subsidize the fuel costs of the UMNO-linked Independent Power Producers who at the same time creamed off the best from TNB until the supposedly financially-strong GLC has become like the Malaysia Airline System (MAS).
EPF, Tabung Haji and FELDA
Our EPF and Tabung Haji are also at risk. The FELDA settlers are also being conned. Just because many of these have managed to lead better lives and now have some money to spare, it is a money-making scheme for UMNO rather than for the settlers. It is the same for all the other privatization schemes.
The existing infrastructure and facilities
Expensive infrastructure such as stadiums are left to rot and even the Kuala Lumpur International Airport has not been spared. After siphoning huge amounts of money from these mega projects, the sub-contractors were left with the “bones” thus they had to take short-cuts to complete the works.
Is it any surprise, these facilities were constructed shoddily and left to rot. We have the National Stadium and Sports Complex rotting as a result of poor maintenance, the roof of the Terengganu Stadium already collapsed, cracks in the MRR2 expressway, chronic leaking in the Parliament House, high costs of the new National Palace and the list continues.
The Klang Valley Mass Rapid Transport (KVMRT) will be the mother of money-making schemes and is already facing doom. It is a certainty the project will need to be bailed out eventually. The overall cost at the present of RM60 billion will inevitably double when completed in 2017 at RM120 billion which is half of the present 2012 budget!
Even the fees for the Independent Check Engineer (ICE) HSS Integrated is said to be in the region of about RM720 million although it is not actually involved in the design work, but just to counter-check and comment. Under ‘real’ market terms, that sort of scope for work should not cost more than RM20 million for a three-year contract.
Talents
So much money has been spent for education and yet we produce mediocre graduates, while those who have real talent have choose to go abroad. This is money wasted and yet the UMNO-BN government is not worried. We must also not forget the school computer lab fiasco with incomplete construction, fallen roofs, inadequate facilities and damaged computers after spending RM550 million and a further RM300 million to rectify the mistakes without anyone being taken to task!
The talented are leaving the country resulting in brain drain. Yet we need talented people to help develop the country. We can’t afford to be like the US where they have money to acquire talent. The money Malaysia invested in its youth for fifteen years, providing their education since primary school, has benefited others, not us.
But for the sake of politics, this is not admitted. Former prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has many a time said, the door is open, we won’t stop anyone from leaving. Left behind in Malaysia are the likes of Ibrahim Ali and his gang of Perkasa hooligans. What future can they offer our children except to launch ‘spitting’ campaigns and May 13-don’t-anger-us scare shows?
GFI report
The latest Global Financial Integrity (GFI) report tells us the RM1 trillion of our funds have been taken out of the country illicitly.
This alone illustrates the depths of the dysfunction in our country, with ever-growing, un-stoppable greedy UMNO leaders the main source and direct cause. Their loyalties and interests have nothing to do with the rakyat or even Malays, who form 60% of the population. It just that when everyone suffers, more Malays suffer simply because there more Malays than anyone else in the country. The horrifying thing is that the majority of the poor are also the Malays, which again proves that UMNO has cared only for its money-making schemes and not redistribution of wealth to benefit the people – be they Malay or otherwise. When will all this nonsense stop? This is a question Malaysians must take seriously to heart. Reflect on the past 54 years and compare against others in the region and the world, and it is clear to see. The time has come to write the UMNO-BN’s obituary and there can be no better occasion to do that than the GE-13 or 13th general election, which is widely expected to be held early next year.
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